


Slow Death

by Benedicthiddleston



Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Angst, Death, Disease, Friendship, Gen, Love, Regret, Sadness, closeness, complete random, just look close enough lol, now a one-shot, random unbelievable plot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-31
Updated: 2013-07-31
Packaged: 2017-12-22 00:22:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/906706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Benedicthiddleston/pseuds/Benedicthiddleston
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It had started with a few headaches. And then his eyes started turning black. What did it mean? And how exactly was he going to deal with it?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Slow Death

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on ff.net on 12/7/2012 in 7 parts, finished on 12/10/2012 - being reposted as one full fanfic on AO3 as I move my worthy fanfics from ff.net/delete my ff.net account.
> 
> I don't own anyone or anything you recognize! Thanks :D
> 
> Unbetaed.
> 
> Warning: You will cry. I'm throwing that out there now. You will need a shock blanket, a stuffed animal, tissues, your favorite comfort item. If that's your big fluffy cat, have them around too. 
> 
> This idea was crazy from the beginning, and I still kind of dislike how I wrote it, but I won't lie: it got a lot of attention on ff.net. So, posting here to keep around because I'm deleting my ff.net account. So, thank you for taking a look.

He had been invisible for 300 years. Over the past ten years though, he had actually not been so invisible – slowly kids came to believe in him. This really gave him something to live for, especially when he had had very, very low moments in his immortal life during those 300 years.

Unfortunately, the puzzling thought passing through his mind right that second was: _I am immortal. But why am I dying?_

It had started with a headache or two. Just the small stuff. Storms got fiercer when he was cranky. He still had a few blizzards in the Northern hemisphere trying to melt as the Southern hemisphere settled in for a really rocky winter. Jack was just not feeling up to his same standards of snow days and fun. The fun was even more of a wake up sign something was wrong – he wasn't having it. He didn't want to play. He made the blizzards and controlled the snowy and cold weather, but he no longer had the energy or the desire to play.

That's when North noticed a change in the young boy's mood. And eye sight.

Jack Frost had been gifted with the magic of fun. With the ability to control the wind and the snowy weather. He had also been gifted with an icy blue eye color.

Unfortunately, Jack's eyes had started to turn black.

North had seen it happen before. They were immortal, but that did not mean they couldn't die. They could die from only one enemy: cancer. And it was a death sentence. Whether it took months or years, it would happen. And Jack's eyes were quickly turning.

The jolly man, feeling regret of the news he must deliver to the young boy, called all the Guardians to the North Pole. Tooth, Sandy, and Bunny all showed up as Jack sulked near the window, hating that North wasn't letting him go. He wanted to at least wreck havoc on the world. He didn't like being cooped up in one place. Even if he had lived in Burgess his whole human and immortal life.

North guided the boy into his office and sat him down in the nearest chair. "Jack, how are you feeling?"

The boy had rolled his half-black-half-blue eyes. "I am fine. Just tired. And irritable. Can I go start that storm in Australia, and then New York, like I was supposed to two days ago?" So Jack was forgetting stuff. Okay, so, Jack was also having trouble remembering which hemisphere winter was also plaguing at that particular moment.

North gulped. "Jack, your eyes…"

The boy shot up from the chair, eyes wide in confusion. "What?! WHAT ABOUT THEM?!" Jack rushed to the nearest mirror, looking at his eyes. And a frown completely took over his face. "W-w-what?"

North placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. "You have a tumor, Jack. In your brain. It is literally the only thing immortals cannot escape. Other than our souls being stolen from our body and our body decaying, the only other thing that can kill us as an immortal is cancer. And your eyes and your mood and lack of interest in playing and forgetting which hemisphere winter is plaguing at the moment – they are all signs."

Jack trembled, North's words falling on terrified ears. "I'm gonna… I'm gonna die?"

The fatherly man could only nod.

Jack felt everything hurt. Everything squeezed. He was _immortal. Why was he dying_? "How… how long?"

North shrugged. "Could be weeks to months to years. Even though your eyes are turning fast. When they are completely black, it'll only be a matter of days."

"What am I supposed to do until then? What do we tell the other Guardians… and Jamie… and…" Jack just kind of sat on the ground where he stood, staring at the wall. He had no idea what he was going to do, or how to handle it. He was _dying_. He had already DIED. His memories reminded him of the cold water and the air slowly being sucked from his lungs… Jack shuddered at the reminder. This time would be different. It would be a slow, painful death.

_Not unless I go back to my pond and drown again…_ It was a fleeting thought, but Jack latched onto it.

North kept silent, letting the boy think.

Jack shook his head, knowing he had to keep his plan quiet. "Don't… don't tell the others. And um, I'll talk to Jamie and his friends…" It felt weird saying it. And he wasn't telling the rest of the world of his death. That would hurt too much.

He got up, for once feeling fine. Maybe he wasn't sick. Except he looked back at the mirror, and he swore he saw more black then blue in his eyes. He gulped.

North narrowed his eyes. "Jack, I don't want you to be alone. Burgess is too far for you to be in this condition alone. I will send a yeti-"

Jack shook his head. "I'll go make my peace and come back if that is what you want."

"I don't want you alone. I will gladly have you here. You can do whatever you want. Terrorize the damn elves for all I care. Just please – don't be alone." North was scared Jack would retreat and the rest of the Guardians would find the boy dead under a tree near his home, the pond near Burgess. It was not an image the jolly man wanted. This was already a distressing matter to have to handle. The Guardians would have to know about it. And soon. But as Jack requested, he would not tell the Guardians… well, yet.

Jack nodded. "I'll be back… in three days, is that cool?" Jack would die tomorrow, and when he didn't show up, they would come looking. He didn't care. He was not dying the slow death this tumor was gonna force him to go through. He didn't want it.

North walked to his desk and pulled out a snow globe from within the deep drawers. He handed it to the young boy. "If you need anything, if you just need to get back here, at any time, you can use that to either connect with me or to get back to the North Pole physically."

Jack stared at the snow globe. North had never actually given him one in all the ten years he had been a Guardian. Holding it was pretty spectacular, even if they were a little frustrating. He had been shoved in a sack once and thrown through one of the magic portals the little snow globe could create. Go figure.

"I'll see you in three days," the jolly man said, smiling sadly. The news was still a pretty hard hit, especially by the look of Jack's depressed look. Being told you are dying is not exactly easy news to take.

"Yeah. Um, North?" Jack didn't want to leave without actually telling the big guy something important.

"Yes, Jack?"

"Thank you. Just… thank you." Jack had to say it. For everything in his life. North needed to know it.

The man just smiled.

Jack let himself out of the office, feeling weird. But lighter. He'd stop by the rest of the Guardians, say a few last words, and then get to Jamie.

He'd hit the pond later that night. Yeah. Good plan.

* * *

His hands were shaking. Every part of his body ached. For being so immortal, he was feeling quite human at that moment.

It had taken most of the evening, but he had finally managed to create a hole in the ice at the pond. He was a winter spirit – he wasn't supposed to be able to do it. But with his frequent mood shifts and seemingly decrease in power, he was starting to be able to _melt_ ice to some extent. It was slow work, but he did it. Plus, a few heavy logs were helpful, even though they winded him pretty fast.

The pond had always been frozen over. For over 310 years. Even in the summer. Probably because Jack did live there, and no adults could see him. Plus, he wasn't away for long. Now…

Jack shook his head, trying to stop from thinking about what he was about to do. He had already tried to console Jamie. That had… _not_ worked.

He had gone to Jamie's dorm room, the kid zonked out after a long study night. He had basically already missed a study review class for Statistics, and had been up all night trying to remember bones and muscles for his Anatomy class later that evening. Jack hated to even give the boy bad news during finals, but if Jack was gonna end his life that night, he needed Jamie to know how much he meant to him.

Waking him hadn't been hard. Jack had barely touched the boy's arm and Jamie had jumped almost out of his skin, eyes wide, one hand curled into a fist, the other hand swing his pillow off the bed. "WHAT?!"

Jamie blinked, seeing Jack. "Oh. What… what are you doing here in May?"

Jack shrugged. "Bored."

Jamie narrowed his eyes. The last time Jack had been around in Spring to Summer was when it was boiling hot and wanted to play. But Jamie could tell Jack didn't want to play. And his eyes… "Are you all right? Your eyes are-"

Jack squeezed his eyes shut. Evidence. "Jamie, I gotta tell you something."

The boy was definitely awake now as he slid to the edge of the bed, eyebrows furrowed. Something was going on. "What is it, Jack?"

The winter spirit did NOT want to tell Jamie this. Not at all. "I'm dying."

Jamie just sat there, not understanding. "What?"

Jack opened his eyes. "My eyes. They're almost black. It's because I have a tumor. I'm _dying_."

It was like a light bulb going on inside Jamie's head. And Jamie looked terrified. "B-b-but you're _immortal_. How does THAT work?!"

He shrugged. "I have no idea. It just happened. I don't know how long I have, and North wants me to stay with him because I can't remember what hemisphere is having winter, and my storms are dangerous, and I just – I can't function correctly."

Jack felt sick to his stomach as he saw Jamie just break. "No, please, no, Jack, please don't die. Don't leave me. I don't want you to leave!" And the boy threw his arms around the winter spirit, bawling.

Jack patted the boy's back, unsure of what to say. "Jamie, just… just promise me you won't give up on your dreams. Please. Go on with life. You and only a few others can see me, so it won't be the worst thing in the world." Jack was trying to rationalize his impending death to the boy who was the first to actually be able to see him. Yup, he was doing a _wonderful_ job at it too.

Jamie clutched his friend's shirt, still crying. "No, please, no…"

It had not ended well, and Jack still regretted having to say good-bye.

But it was for the best, and he knew it.

The hole beckoned him.

Jack gulped. He stared at the staff in his hand and shook his head. He threw it, as far away as he could. He wouldn't need it ever again.

Looking up into the sky, and seeing the Moon, Jack rolled his eyes. "Somehow, being immortal doesn't mean you live forever," he muttered bitterly.

And then he jumped without another look back.

* * *

North wasn't worried about Jack. No, Jack said he would be back in three days. Jack was going to say good-bye to Jamie, and make his peace with the world.

So why was North staring at the globe, feeling uneasy? Something was going on. He could feel it, in his belly.

The snow globe in his pocket glowed. He grabbed it, staring into the image being relayed back to him.

Jack was… _underwater_. And looked scared. But he wasn't moving. Wasn't struggling.

And it clicked. North knew exactly what Jack had done.

With his heart trying to break free of his chest, North yelled into the snow globe, "JACK'S POND, NOW!"

A portal appeared and North jumped through. Unfortunately, the look of Jack's closed eyes and lack of chest movement and paler-than-normal skin told North he might already be too late.

* * *

Jack could feel his mind slipping. His body felt frozen. The water had been so cold, he felt every nerve shut down and every muscle and vessel in his body constrict. He couldn't breathe. His chest was burning. His powers had basically made the pond even colder, and he could feel the ice creeping up his arms and legs, paralyzing him.

He was afraid. For once in his immortal life, he was afraid of whatever came next. _What happens when you die?_ Obviously he didn't know what that was, especially when the Man in the Moon had given him immortality. His sister, his parents – they had been dead a long time. Was there anything after death? Jack was going to die anyway – why did he care? And why was he worrying about what happened after death _now_?

His hands brushed the snow globe that had been in his pocket. He just felt so weak and powerless in the cold, without air – his eyes gently closed, the snow globe glowing as it unknowingly called North.

North hit the ground, noticing the hole that had never been in the pond before. Jack kept his home always covered in ice – rock solid ice. He was Jack Frost – he didn't want anyone else to fall in and drown, and he couldn't help it with his powers. The hole was a shock.

He skidded to the edge of the ice, looking down into the dark, trying to notice Jack. The snow globe was still glowing, and it outlined an unmoving teenage boy. North gulped, searching for anyway to get Jack out without actually freezing himself.

And he saw it. Jack's staff. The jolly man's eyes lit up as he lunged for it. "You will NOT die like this, Jack Frost. Not while I am a Guardian and the Moon is protecting us – protecting children." He grabbed the staff and ran for the hole.

North carefully maneuvered the staff, trying to get Jack's arm. It soon became obvious North was going to have no luck. Jack was covered in a layer of ice.

Frustrated, North threw the staff across the ice and jumped into the pond, the ice around the hole breaking up into pieces. North grabbed Jack, for as cold as he was and the ice covering him, there had to be hope. Hope he still had function. The cold slowed everything down – death came slower, by the way of asphyxiation.

Lugging the body onto the ice North broke the ice that was encasing Jack. The boy was freezing and unmoving.

"No, Jack. No, please, don't be gone." He needed to get the life still in Jack moving. Somehow.

A bright light encased the scene as a portal appeared. A rabbit hole appeared nearby. And a sand airplane was spotted coming into view of the pond. The three Guardians of Dreams, Memories, and Hope had come to the rescue.

Tooth stepped from the portal as Bunny hopped out of his tunnel and Sandy landed his sand plane. "What. Is. Going. On?" Tooth demanded, hands on her hips.

At Tooth's voice, Jack's eyes flew open as he started coughing. North grabbed the boy's shoulders, helping him sit up.

"Dying," Jack managed to mutter, feeling the cold in his bones, the inactivity of his whole body. He was lucky to be _awake_ , let alone still _alive_. He was still dying though. It was a reality. North would never have let him drown. He wasn't supposed to be found.

Sandy put up a question mark and Bunny barked out, "Excuse me. Dying? And when exactly where you going to mention you were going to go drown in your pond?"

North held up a hand. "Jack is dying. From a tumor."

Tooth gasped. "That's why his eyes are…" Her suspicions were confirmed as North nodded.

Jack slowly, with a great deal of pain and anger, curled his still-frozen hands into fists. "You should have let me drown."

North said firmly, "NO!"

"And when were you going to tell the rest of us?!" Tooth shouted, her words more directed at North then at Jack, even though she was pretty sure she was furious at the pair of them. North knew so much more than the rest of the Guardians, but that didn't mean he had to keep _secrets_ from them, especially when Jack was DYING!

Jack was slow to respond, but he finally managed to say it. "Because I didn't want to tell you."

North pointed at Jack. "It was his choice. I was… going to tell you… when Jack got back from making his peace with Jamie, but-"

"BUT JACK GOES AND TRIES TO DROWN HIMSELF."

Jack looked angry. "YOU WERE GOING TO TELL THEM?!" He couldn't feel his legs, but he was going to make them move. He tried to stand, but couldn't. He had no energy, and the cold continued to make his chest ache. He looked clumsy and sat on his butt, every process slow and struggling. He was bitter. "You should have left me in the pond."

Tooth flew to Jack, getting in his face. "No. You still have time. Don't give up on us _now_ , Jack. We need _you_." She looked into his angry eyes, noticing they had no blue left within them. Trying to drown had quickened their change. It would only be a matter of time – hours to days – now.

"Yeah, mate. We need you," echoed Bunny, his face giving North a "you really created a disaster, you know that?" look.

North looked frustrated. "We are going back to the pole." It was his executive decision.

Sandy held up a sand created image of a "thumbs up" in agreement. It was cold out, it was dark, and Jack needed physical and emotional support.

Jack tried standing again. "No."

Tooth grabbed Jack's arm and gave him a smile. "It's for the best, J-"

He jerked out of her grasp, black eyes looking frustrated, hurt, and angry. "No. Just leave me alone. I'm not one of you. I never was. I spent 300 years not knowing who I was or what I was doing wrong – no one seeing me, feeling abandoned and alone. And Man in the Moon wouldn't say a word to me. And then I found my purpose – Jamie could see me and I became a Guardian. Now, ten years later, I am an immortal and I am DYING. Immortals don't DIE, last I knew. You should have left me in that pond." Jack couldn't get up, but he was NOT going with them. He would have welcomed the stay in the pond until the tumor took his life. It would have been a good death – he wouldn't have been awake. Now he would feel the pain up until he breathed his last. At least in the pond he wouldn't have felt his body go. The cold would have stripped him of all feeling.

Bunny tapped his foot against the ice. "Except you aren't in that pond anymore. And we can help, Jack. We can-"

Jack squeezed his eyes shut, hating that they were even near him. He felt like the plague. "Unless you can take away the pain, I don't think you can help." He tried controlling his anger. He was going to die a painful death. And he was not ready.

"Jack, is that what you are worried about? Pain?" North had a world's amount of remedies and medications in his infirmary. What else did the elves do during the year other then investigate plants and chemicals and such? Other then eat his cookies and steal his stuff. If he could help Jack, maybe things would be okay. Maybe.

The young Guardian wouldn't look any of them in the eye. "Maybe."

"We can really help, Jack. We aren't going to leave you. We won't abandon you. We need you. Like this news hasn't affected us – hello, we just _learned_ about this situation," the Keeper of Memories waved her hand to Bunny and Sandy, referring to moments before. "We all want to help," Tooth whispered, holding out her hand to him.

Jack didn't want to die. He was terrified. If he went with them… "Help me, please," he whispered, feeling the fear consume him. The cold and the fear… _isn't that what Pitch and I would have been together, had I gone with him?_

* * *

Tooth slipped out of the bedroom, her heart heavy, but her face smiling.

Sandy was waiting outside in the hall, patiently amusing himself with the elves that skittered by every few minutes. He saw Tooth and held up a question mark above his head.

Everyone was worried about Jack. After helping the boy up from the ice, his limbs still protesting, his core temperature far below his normal as the Keeper of Winter and Fun, they had jumped through another portal to the North Pole (Bunny took his tunnels, as usual). By the time they had gotten Jack to his room, one North had set aside for the young winter spirit ever since he had become a guardian over ten years before, Jack was no longer protesting coming back to warmth and safety - he was in severe pain from his frozen limbs and the tumor pressing on his brain stem. North had thrown blankets on the winter spirit, ordering the Yeti, Phil, and three elves to get him morphine from the infirmary. It would not only decrease Jack's anxiety, but the spreading pain from the thawing limbs and short circuiting nerves.

Tooth had stayed with him, gently guiding the boy into sleep from the medication. He would sleep for some time, which was good.

Sandy had been waiting for news, in case he needed to give Jack a dream. There was no doubt Jack would be having a few nightmares of his own from the news hanging over him and the near drowning experience.

Tooth gave Sandy thumbs up. "He is asleep. Peaceful for now. Where are Bunny and North?"

Sandy pointed down the hall, towards the globe room. Tooth just nodded in understanding.

The two glided down the hall, two of the three Guardians having the ability to fly. Bunny preferred his tunnels for travel and North had his sleigh and the snow globes.

The globe room appeared, Bunny and North in a heated conversation.

"You didn't tell the rest of us, North. What did you expect us to do? Stand by as Jack drowned? We are part of the group also. And Jack - Jack is important. Have you even asked Manny if we can save Jack? He is in terrible pain right now, and not just from his idiotic suicidal attempt. We watch out for the children, but also each other."

North rubbed his face, feeling the weight of this situation really hit him hard in the face. "He didn't want you to know. I first noticed his mood, and then his eyes, and knew what was going on. He had no idea. How did I know he would try to commit suicide? Even if it wasn't suicide per say - he wanted to be numb of the pain he is about to go through and not feel his death. The cold was going to do that. Now he is in worse pain. I... I find this all very frustrating. Jack is just too young at this. Too young to die," he whispered, his hands clutched tight into fists.

"We need to talk to Manny," Bunny urged, pointing up at the sky. Dark had descended and Manny wouldn't mind a chat. No way.

Tooth spoke up, "Manny will know what we must do."

Sandy nodded in agreement.

Bunny walked over to the five cornered star that held the images and simple shapes of every Guardian. North with his red square, Bunny with his purple triangle, Sandy with his yellow circle, Tooth with her green diamond, and Jack with his blue hexagon. It was also the place they communicated with the Man in the Moon.

Bunny stood in the middle of the star and called out, "Manny, we would like to talk!" Tooth, Sandy, and North came up behind Bunny, waiting anxiously.

A few seconds later the Moon shown bright and beautiful through the window built specifically for him. He smiled, knowing they had questions.

"Manny, Jack - why has he got the mark of death?" Tooth was the first to speak up, ever curious about her friend and the tragedy that was sure to come.

Manny sent down a moonbeam, its message saying: "Jack will have peace."

North was glad about that. "Thank you, Manny. How much time do we have with him?"

Another moonbeam: "Enough."

Bunny gulped. "Please, what are we supposed to do with a dying Guardian? Immortals don't die. Why Jack, and why so soon after finding his purpose? It has only been ten years, and 300 years of being alone." They all knew how Jack felt. They knew it, but had barely felt it. 300 years was a long time to wander the earth, no one seeing you, having little to no purpose in life, forever roaming. And now Jack would die.

Another moonbeam finally appeared with a final message: "He is very special. Jack has a good heart. The answers are not easy, but will come, with time." Manny slipped away, leaving all four Guardians standing there, even more hopeless.

"Poor Jack," Tooth muttered, feeling her heart hurt. There was nothing they could do. Except be with him. And hold his hand... Lessen his fears.

An elf scurried into the room, a companion right behind him. They chattered about Jack being awake, and completely out of his mind. North took off, worried.

The rest of the Guardians gave each other sorrowful looks. It was going to be a very long few hours to days until Jack breathed his last.

* * *

Jack was crying when North came into the room, another dose of morphine in his hands. "Jack."

The young spirit had the sheets balled up in his hands, literal sweat and tears pouring down his face, his black eyes clouded. "I can't see. I cannot see a thing and I cannot feel my legs and my chest feels funny. Oh goodness, please -" Jack was breaking as he cried, grappling at his sudden loss of vision and increased fear of death. "Please don't let me die alone." He was fast losing his battle, and it terrified him.

North was beside the bed, hands on Jack's face. "I am here, Jack, and I am not leaving. I will stay here for as long as you need me. So will Tooth, Sandy, and Bunny. We won't leave you alone. We won't." North pulled from his pocket another snow globe. He gently placed it into the whimpering boy's hand, closing the fingers over it. "Don't let go of this. You will always have a part of me even if I am out of the room, okay?"

Jack nodded, clutching the snow globe that he could hardly feel. "Th-th-thank you, North."

The old man smiled. "Always. I have more morphine, how much pain are you in?"

Jack shuddered. "A lot."

North put a hand to Jack's chest. "Sleep will help."

Jack didn't even fight the drowsiness that took over him almost immediately after North gave him the medication. It was a blessing, so much.

North watched as Jack's breathing evened out, his eyes closed, his face once more peaceful. The snow globe was still held tightly in his right hand, never to be let go.

North let himself out, the elves fully capable of watching a sleeping, bed bound winter spirit. That was the hope anyway.

Tooth appeared beside the old man, eyes wide in worry. North let out a heavy sigh. "He has gone blind. It is literally only a matter of time until he slips into a coma and breathes his last."

Tooth felt her emotions grieving already for the young Guardian. It just wasn't fair.

"He is asleep now, but the next time he awakens, if anyone wants to have a heart-to-heart or say good-be, it would probably be best. He needs to know our feelings, and we need to listen to him."

The Keeper of Memories nodded. She definitely agreed with North. "Absolutely."

* * *

Hours later, Jack was sitting up in bed, leaning his head against the wall. His eyesight had come back – no one knows what happened to make it disappear – and the pain had decreased. Except for the funny feeling in Jack's chest. That had not gone away.

Sandy had just left, a silent little bugger, but finding peace with the situation. Sandy was one to be a neutral party, even though he could be a fighter if he needed to be. Revenge best served cold.

Bunny had been first to part words with Jack. Nothing out right heartfelt. Just a "sorry, kid." Bunny wasn't finding the emotions, not with Jack awake and functioning, anyway.

Tooth's turn had been really emotional. She had glided over to the bed, giving Jack her best smile. Teeth were her thing, so she had to, ya know? And then they had just started talking about life and death and Tooth had started to cry, saying she didn't want him to die, and she didn't want to say good-bye. Needless to say, it had been a truly tiring conversation and Jack was worn out.

Jack let his head hit the pillow, definitely tired. The funny feeling in his chest had grown, and it felt like it was weighing him down. Having to tell Tooth, Sandy, and Bunny good-bye… hurt. A lot. And now North? It felt horrible. He picked up his snow globe, looking into it, watching the snow fall. He would no longer get to create storms or play with any children – no more snowball fights. No more fun. No more… no more Jack.

North eased into the seat beside Jack's bed, watching the young Guardian slowly spin the snow globe in his hands.

"I'm not gonna be able to play with kids anymore. Or have a snowball fight. Jamie… he didn't take my news very well."

"He still believes. He will always believe."

Jack nodded slowly. "I just don't get it, North. Why me? Why after 300 years of solitude and ten years as a Guardian do I get the black mark? The black eyes and the pain and the impending death? I'm immortal. I wandered around for _300 years_."

North had no idea how to answer the young one's questions. There was so much he didn't know. So much he had no idea about.

But Jack just kept going. "Ya know, I tried killing myself a few times. I did almost everything _but_ drown. I don't know why. But nothing worked. None of my methods took my immortal life. I could _not_ die. So I finally just accepted the fact all I could do was be invisible and create snow storms and snowball fights and fun without any acknowledgement of that fact. And then Pitch… Pitch came along and Manny made me a Guardian. I got my memories back and I finally understood it all. For the past ten years, I actually felt like I mattered, like it all was going to be okay.

"But there was one thing that just kept nagging at me. The fact I never, ever got to say good-bye to my family. To tell them I was okay. To make sure my sister was okay. I didn't even know I had one until I got my memories back. I just… I _drowned_ on them. I saved my sister from the ice, but couldn't save myself. And my parents having to live with the fact their son was dead. I bet they didn't even find a body because I _was alive_ , but completely and utterly invisible. I was there, but had no recollection of them, and they went on with life. Heck, I don't even know if my sister moved on. I don't' know what happened to my sister or my parents. And it has bothered me the past ten years.

"And last night I wasn't even trying to drown myself. I just wanted to be numb of this death. Numb of the reality of my life. I _died_ , and the Moon saved me. And for 300 years, I wandered around knowing not one thing about myself, except that I was _Jack Frost_. And it killed me, so much. And finally knowing who I was really gave me a purpose. But I never got to tell my family I was okay. No one lives 300 years if they aren't immortal. I found out about them too late. I sacrificed my _life_ for my little sister, and I didn't even get to let her know it mattered to me to see her _safe_.

"Why am I dying now if all I was going to do as an immortal was suffer for 310 years? Suffer a lonely life for 300 years, and then suffer that separation for ten years from the family that I had been searching for and desiring for 300 years without even knowing it? Why do I get the black mark? Why my _life_?" Jack was clutching the snow globe, hands trembling in sadness and anger. His eyes were narrowed as he tried to keep his emotions in check. Everything hurt, and everything was a mess.

North sighed. "I do not know, Jack. I'm so sorry for everything. This shouldn't have happened to you. But you must know – the rest of us Guardians, we are family. All of us. We care for you. And we will be with you until the end, no matter what."

Jack nodded. "I know. This frustration… these emotions… I feel like I've had to hold them forever. I just wish I had peace." Jack looked and felt tired. He needed sleep… _eternal sleep is coming… something you didn't exactly get when you drowned 310 years ago…_

North let the silence stretch. Jack was feeling the loss of his world – from his memories to his 300 years of solitude to the past ten years of finally being able to connect to kids and people seeing him. And now he was dying – horribly fast and painfully. North could feel it was soon – very soon.

"I miss my family," Jack whispered, his eyes feeling heavy.

North took Jack's hand, squeezing. "I'm sorry, Jack. I'm sorry you drowned in that pond. I'm sorry you were taken from your family, only to find out about them 300 years after the fact. I'm sorry for the past 310 years. I wish I had known… I wish we all could have helped early on. I'm so sorry…."

* * *

An hour later, things had changed. Tooth had come in to check up on the sleeping boy to find his hand hot to the touch, and upon taking the boy's temperature, alerted North to the extremely high fever of 106.8 degrees Fahrenheit.

The Keeper of Christmas felt the dread in his belly. Jack had slipped into a coma. Jack was normally below a normal person's temperature, not freezing, but not warm to the touch either. Now he was burning up, and not moving. He didn't respond to anyone's voice, and a touch of Jack's hands confirmed his inability to react to stimuli. His pupils didn't react. His brain was slowly shutting down. His temperature control system had broken completely.

North started a round-the-clock vigil, not wishing Jack to be alone. He was the first to watch over the unmoving boy, the snow globe still in Jack's right hand, the snow still swirling around, a stark reminder of what Jack once had… and would no longer experience.

* * *

The night had been uneventful. Sandy drifted from Jack's room, shaking his head to Bunny that no change had been noted in the coma ridden winter spirit. Even Jack's fever of 106.8 degrees Fahrenheit was unchanged.

Bunny hopped into the room, settling into the nearby chair. They had started taking turns watching the sleeping boy, as to their promise not to let him be alone, even if he couldn't respond any longer. Bunny picked up the book Tooth had started on her last shift, using her knowledge of the coma ridden children she had visited that reading was therapeutic. And of course, Bunny groaned at the subject content.

"Really, she is reading _Tangled_ to you?" Bunny flipped to the saved spot and rolled his eyes. "I swear we all turned mushy when you got sick."

Bunny settled in for the long haul and started to read.

"'Unfortunately, I didn't have very long to savor my happy feeling…..'"

* * *

Bunny stretched. It was almost North's turn.

He paused, sniffing the air. He turned, his eyes wide. " _No_ ," he whispered, hopping to the door with a speed he felt like he had never achieved before.

He swung open the door and yelled, "NORTH!"

Seconds later, the Keeper of Christmas was at Jack's bedroom door. He didn't even need to be told what Bunny was calling for. North entered the room, heart beating with rapid ferocity.

The snow globe was on the ground. It had been in Jack's hand the entire time.

North approached Jack, feeling the weight of the world on his shoulders. He knelt beside the bed, barely holding his own emotions as he noted the lack of chest wall movement and the stillness in the room.

Jack had died.

The snow globe had fallen when Jack had officially gone lax in death.

"Oh, Jack. I am so sorry, so very, very sorry…" And North finally let go, feeling the tears fall and letting the sobs take over.

Behind him, Bunny, Tooth, and Sandy stood in the door way. Tooth wiped away a tear, her hands shaking. All her baby Tooth's knew what had happened. In her mind, crying was heard. Bunny was trying to rub away the tears, but he wasn't having much luck. He was a bunny, the Easter Bunny. He didn't cry. Or that's what he thought. And Sandy looked pretty deflated, his feet on the ground, his head hung in sorrow.

Sorrow spread like wildfire through the North Pole, Yetis and elves alike feeling the hurt like the now remaining four Guardians felt. It was going to be a very mournful time.

* * *

The Guardians and the whole of the North Pole gathered together in the globe room the very next morning for the last time in the memory of Jack Frost.

The globe room was filled to the brim with elves and yetis, each quiet and alert as each Guardian held two candles, together circling the star that held the symbols for all five Guardians of Childhood. They protected children - those who believed, those who didn't, and those who were in-between. And they protected themselves.

North was the first to set one of his two candles down on Jack's point of the star: a blue hexagon holding his image. He then gently placed a candle on his own point, feeling the grief that had plagued him since weeping beside Jack's lifeless body intensify.

Sandy was next, his hand gently brushing the image of a boy of many years, but who had died too young. He put one candle on Jack's point, and then his second candle on his own point of the star, just like North.

Tooth did the same, gently setting one candle on Jack's point, and then setting down her candle, trying to keep her tears in check. She was having a very vivid memory of this same funeral ritual for Sandy back when Pitch had been fighting them. Sandy was okay – but there was no way Jack would ever be back. It had been a different kind of fight.

Bunny was the last to place his two candles on the star, his face a blank slate. He really had a bone to pick with Manny. It wasn't sadness plaguing the rabbit's heart – it was anger. Anger for the loss of one so young, of one so new to the Guardians – and of one who had searched for so long for family, that it had all been cut short.

Tooth was the first to extend her hands to Sandy on her right and Bunny on her left. Sandy reached for North's, completing the chain.

"For Jack," she whispered, letting her words hang in the silence.

A bright light filled the silence, the Moon shining bright from up above.

North looked up, answering the Moon's call. "Manny. You have come. What is it you would like to say?"

The Moon reflected an image, one none of the Guardians would never, ever, ever forget.

A shadow of Jack appeared. He as smiling as he held out his hand to a little girl beside him. The little girl took it, and they started to walk off, hand in hand, peaceful.

_Family_. It was a word the Moon gently told each Guardian, letting them know that while Jack was gone from this earth, he had been reunited with the family he had longed for since he had first been turned immortal.

The Moon gave them all a sad smile and disappeared.

North sighed. "Jack got what he wanted, deep within his heart."

"His family," Bunny echoed, feeling his anger dissolve. Jack had died, but not in vain. While they had certainly been family for the past ten years, Jack had had a much deeper want. He wanted to be with his family again. And all was not lost. His immortality hadn't been reversed, but a peace given within death. It was the best gift anyone could have given the forever-teenaged Guardian.

"Jack didn't die in vain. We are still here. We can live for him. Jack's got a wonder of an afterlife. For Jack," Tooth called out, letting her ears take in her words.

Sandy rose up above the crowd, gently showing every single individual in dream sand. Each person had a smiling Jack in their mind. A reminder that they would live on. A reminder that Jack had been given his desire of family. _His true family_.

And everything would be okay. With time.

* * *

_Epilogue  
_

"I miss my family," he whispered, feeling tired, feeling the weight of his predicament on his shoulders, on his chest. The strange pressure had sat on his chest like an elephant for hours now, and finally, _finally_ Jack was succumbing to its calling.

His eyes closed and his breathing evened out.

And he started to dream.

_Bright light. A smiling face. "Welcome, Jack_."

_The boy turned at the sound of a very familiar voice. The Moon's voice. "Huh?" He looked at his hands, their usual pale color no longer pale. For once, Jack actually looked… human._

" _It is true, right? That you miss your family?"_

_Jack gave serious thought to what the Moon was asking him and he finally nodded slowly. "I miss them terribly."_

_The Moon circled the young Guardian. "Jack, I'm going to give you something I have only done once before. I'm going to grant you your wish."_

_He looked confused. "What wish?"_

_The Moon smiled and disappeared._

_Jack started to run, his heart racing, his temperature climbing. "No, wait, please – what wish?! And what about m-m-my life?" Jack's voice trailed as he felt his heart lurch, and he fell to the ground._

_Everything hurt, everything was on fire. Jack was in some serious pain as he started to cry. He wanted to see Jamie. Wanted to tell Tooth how much she meant to him. Wanted to tell Bunny he was sorry for everything. Wanted to talk to North. He was dying…_

_Jack felt his eyes close once more. "Manny, save me…"_

"Jack! Jack!"

An oddly familiar voice was incredibly close by. Jack blinked, feeling his toes for the first time in a _long_ time, and feeling his fingers, stretching them. He saw his hands, his feet… and their skin color. _I'm human._ "I'm human?" he asked to no one in particular.

A hand tugged on his shirt. "Jack! Come on, Jack! Momma and Papa are waiting for us!" The form beside him giggled, jumping up and down.

Jack smiled. _My family_. Beside him was his little sister, Pippa, her brown eyes glowing back at him.

"Okay, hold on, hold on," he managed to say, holding out his hand for his sister. She eagerly took it, giggling.

"Momma and Papa will be so excited to see us!" It was like a child like faith. Like nothing had ever happened. Like Jack had never drowned. Like his sister and parents had never died before he knew of them as Jack Frost.

_I am no longer Jack Frost_. The thought perplexed him, but he shrugged it off. Whatever this was, whatever this life was after death – he wasn't minding it.

"Okay, let's go see momma and papa," Jack told his sister, letting her lead the way. Her laugh was all he could hear. Her smile was all he could see.

_If this is the afterlife… Moon, would ya mind telling the Guardians I'm okay? Because I am. I really am_.

**Author's Note:**

> Hug a stuffed animal (or a real animal). Cry. I give you permission to have any emotion. Make sure that shock blanket is tight around you. Use it as a tissue if you must. *hugs* Comments are always welcome.
> 
> Thanks for reading :)
> 
> (And the Tangled book Bunny started reading was "Tangled: Rapunzel's Tale" adapted by Barbara Bazaldua, illustrated by Dave Gilson and Jean-Paul Orpinas, copyright 2010, and the line was from chapter 7, page 41)


End file.
